MOORHEAD, Minn. (Valley News Live) – From a young age, everything came easily to Tommy Bearson. Family members say he was a bright child, a good student and a star athlete with a love for all sports.

“Tom was a fiery competitor. He was a guy who loved basketball and always had fun on the court,” says his basketball coach Marcus Oistad.

Oistad was named head coach of the Sartell High School men’s basketball team in 2008, Tommy’s senior year. He was captain, scored the thousandth point of his career and led his team to the semifinals.

“You remember a lot of things in your first year. I remember his passion and love for the game and how he competed day in and day out,” Oistad said.

Two months after the season, Tommy graduated from high school. After the summer, he went to NDSU for his freshman year. He wanted to study nursing.

After just four weeks of college, he disappeared after leaving a house party.

“My first reaction was shock. It’s just deeply depressing. How can someone just disappear? It was a real surprise, a real shock for everyone,” says Oistad.

News of Tommy’s disappearance spread quickly. Oistad says his former athletes traveled to Fargo to join the search.

Billboards were put up all over the city.

Three days passed before the worst happened.

During a press conference to discuss the discovery of his body, police officials said, “Searchers encountered a dead person lying in an outdoor area in Moorhead, in the area that was scheduled to be searched. The description of the body and clothing of this dead person leads us to believe that this is indeed our missing Thomas Bearson.”

“They found him. It’s heartbreaking. You don’t know what to think, you don’t know what to feel. You’re just in shock. Even 10 years later, you still feel that way. It’s still a shock that all this happened and it’s all so unexpected,” says Oistad.

Tommy was found dead at an RV sales lot in Moorhead. Medical experts are ruling the death a homicide and say he died of asphyxia, meaning his body was deprived of oxygen.

According to records, alcohol and two prescription drugs were found in his system. However, records show that this was not the cause of death.

“It’s no longer just a local investigation, we have partners at the state and federal level as well. Thanks to the technology of the last decade, like everything else, we now have the ability to re-examine the evidence we found, and we will have it re-analyzed with the new technology in the hopes that we will make further progress and discoveries,” said Captain Deric Swenson of the Moorhead Police Department.

The leaves change color, the seasons keep changing… Still no answers.

In an earlier interview, Tommy’s sister Maddie said: “It’s much easier when you imagine that he’s better off where he is now. No one will hurt him there.”

Also in an earlier interview, his father Greg said: “Those three days we spent searching for him were the hardest days of our lives.”

“Especially this time of year, you think about it, and for his family, for his parents, especially Greg and Debbie, it’s hard not knowing. His dad has been really supportive of our program, his mom and dad have too, so we’ve stayed in touch and talked to them. I know it’s hard. Not knowing must be really difficult, but you think about it a lot,” Oistad says.

Tommy had come home the week before his death.

The family said they were grateful for this.

There were many tips.

The investigation is far from over.

His memory is kept alive.

“They wanted to see kids playing basketball because that was what Tom loved. They wanted to give something to the community by seeing young kids outside just playing ball freely and for fun,” Oistad says.

The Tom Bearson Memorial Courts in Sartell, his hometown, were dedicated in his honor last summer.

There you will find a basket with stickers on it. It is the same basket that was in the Bearson driveway when Tommy was growing up. Several tournaments are held there and the kids play on it all summer long in his honor.

“It’s a great group of people. Both his mother and father were great supporters. His sister was a great student and athlete at school. Great people. It’s unfortunate that they had to go through something like that. I know from talking to his father that he thinks about it every day. It’s something you never get over. You miss the time you get to spend with your son and watch him grow up and start his own family,” Oistad says.

Immortalized in this park, forever 18.

Tommy’s mother, Debbie, said in a recent interview with WCCO: “On one hand, it feels like yesterday. On the other hand, it feels like an eternity. At the end of the day, I know I’m going to see Tom one day. One way or another, I’m going to see him again.”

Police are asking anyone with information, no matter how insignificant, to contact them by phone at 218-299-5119 or email [email protected] or text an anonymous tip. You can do this by texting the keyword “TIPMOORHEAD” and your tip to 847-411. Moorhead Police released a statement today regarding the investigation. Click here to view it.

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